When it comes to designing that next great product – be it the latest device for a major client or your first side project – the ability to examine the design problem (or opportunity) from many different angles can be one of the most challenging hurdles to get past before your first concept even has wheels. Whether working alone or collaboratively, one of the most effective ways of quickly plotting out multiple solutions is to utilize post-it notes, picture clippings, material samples and any other tool that allows for ideas to be quickly iterated and communicated before moving on to the next idea. While there is no single design thinking tool or…

While the electronic Boosted Board skateboards may be taking over today’s streets, nothing beats the simplicity of an original cruiser board when it comes to getting from A to B. As a self-confessed “hater of plastic”, German industrial designer Tom Wilhelm set out to create a wood replacement to the plastic Penny board that just might be one of the best-looking cruiser skateboards we’ve ever seen. The Rollholz line, which is made by hand, is inspired by the original cruiser boards of the 1970s with a modern twist. Crafted from both light and dark woods, the finished decks are finished with dip in a contrasting pastel or marbled paint scheme…

Time for another round of apps that cover the spectrum of your beloved mobile device, be it iPhone, Android or Windows! The Weekly App Smack is the best of new or updated design and productivity apps (and maybe a couple of fun ones, too) for the busy design or engineering professional and this week we have a list sure to make you more efficient. Do you have an app suggestion that has made your life easier or changed up your workflow? Let us know in the comments below or send it into tips@www.solidsmack.com. Hit it! Vizable “Vizable is the best app for exploring your data on iOS. Pinch, tap, and…

By now, you’ve probably avoided running over multiple Pokémon Go players as they traverse parking lots, alleyways and continents searching out Pokémon, Poké Stops and Poké Gyms. Outside of making a blue, red or yellow outfit to match the team you chose at level 5 (someone just told us that’s what happens, promise), you’ve not properly covered your dashboard, backpack or visor with your favorite Pokémon. We’ve got the solution.

I needed to build a very quiet, high-capacity compressor for making ID models and prototypes in my shop. The one I have is quite loud and doesn’t have the capacity I was comfortable with for urethane casting work. I sourced a 6-gallon air tank on eBay for $35, including shipping, from a fellow in Indiana. Next, I needed a refrigerator compressor.

Having born a toy company out of his living room with the desire to revive the “glamorous ’60s American modernist vibe and carve it into awesome contemporary wood toy designs” for his two young daughters, Brooklyn-based architect and designer Vlad Dragusin has since expanded Candylab Toys into a team of four after successfully launching his first Kickstarter campaign and raising over $100K in 2013. Now, Dragusin and team are back on Kickstarter with an all-new lineup of cars and modernist building blocks for users to build out a midcentury universe on their desktops with the goal of raising enough cash to launch their very own toy manufacturing facility just outside…